Joseph Mazzello

Mazzello's first film appearance was a small role in 1990's Presumed Innocent, starring Harrison Ford. He then went on to appear in Radio Flyer, Jersey Girl and the TV film Desperate Choices: To Save My Child in 1992. In 1993, Mazzello gained further recognition after starring in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park as Tim Murphy and in Richard Attenborough's Shadowlands. He later appeared in 1994's The River Wild as Roarke Hartman.

In 1995, Mazzello had roles in The Cure and Three Wishes. Both films were critical and commercial failures. Mazzello continued his film career with lead roles in Star Kid in 1997, and in Simon Birch with Ian Michael Smith in 1998. Both were critical and commercial flops. He also provided voice-over work in the English dub of The Adventures of Buratino.

Mazzello was born in Rhinebeck, New York, and raised in Hyde Park, New York, the son of Virginia (née Strong) and Italian American Joseph Mazzello, Jr., who owned a dance studio. He has one older sister, Mary, and a younger brother, John, who have both appeared in films. His father is of three-quarters Italian and one-quarter German Jewish ancestry, while his mother is of Irish and English descent. Mazzello went to the Catholic school Our Lady of Lourdes. He is an alumnus of the University of Southern California, entering the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 2001 following a recommendation letter from director Steven Spielberg. Mazzello paid for school with his salary from a small appearance in The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), something the actor jokingly referred to as his graduation present from Spielberg.

Mazzello's first film role in the 2000s was in 2001's Wooly Boys. In 2002, Mazzello made his television debut on Providence. He then appeared on CBS' hit shows CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Without a Trace. Afterwards, he appeared in Raising Helen (2004), The Hollow (2004), The Sensation of Sight (2006), and the short film Beyond All Boundaries (2009). Mazzello made his directorial debut with the short film Matters of Life and Death (2007).

In 2010, Mazzello played Dustin Moskovitz, one of the co-founders of Facebook in the David Fincher-directed film The Social Network. His performance was well-received by critics and he and the cast were nominated for several awards. During this, he played Eugene Sledge on the mini-series The Pacific. Mazzello went on to appear in G.I. Joe: Retaliation as G.I. Joe operative Mouse in 2013, and starred as John Deacon in the 2018 Queen biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody. The Social Network earned $224.9 million, G.I. Joe: Retaliation $375.7 million, and Bohemian Rhapsody $903.7 million at the worldwide box office.

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Sept. 20-26

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